 The Post-Cold War World 1990s

The end of the Cold War leads to…  the expansion of democracy across the globe.  Why?  an outbreak of ethnic conflict in the former USSR.  Why?  the U.S. as the only superpower (hegemon).

Expansion of Democracy  New democracies:  Spain  Portugal  Greece  Latin America (except Cuba)  Nigeria  Etc.  Expanded democracies  South Korea  Taiwan  South Africa  Etc.

Example: South Africa  Apartheid: system of racial segregation enforced by the National Party government in South Africa from  Black South Africans were not allowed to vote, obtain certain jobs, travel freely, or even marry without the permission of the government  Does this sound familiar?

South Africa United States

Opposition to Apartheid  Internal: Nelson Mandela and the ANC (African National Congress) fought for racial equality for decades  External: After decades of condemnation from the UN, many countries passed sanctions against South Africa in the late 1980s.  Why now?

Exceptions to the Growth of Democracy  Parts of the Middle East (movements for democracy suppressed)  North Korea  Cuba  China

Example: China  Spring 1989 – thousands of pro-democracy protestors killed in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square

Breakup of the Soviet Union

Violent Conflict in the Former USSR  Chechen War for Independence  Chechnya: oil-rich, Muslim province fighting for independence from Russia (failed – still a part of Russia, with sporadic fighting)

Violent Conflict in the Former USSR  Nagorno-Karabakh War ( )  Ethnic Armenians living in Azerbaijan wanted to unify with the country of Armenia – ethnic cleansing on both sides – ended in ceasefire in 1994 (still no resolution)

Violent Conflict in the Former USSR  Yugoslavia – country made up of 8 regions/provinces divided on ethnic lines  After end of Cold War, most of the provinces peacefully separated into different republics  Problem: Serbs, Croats and Muslim Bosnians were scattered across three different republics – Serbs dominated the former Yugoslav army and sought to create a “Greater Serbia” from land from Croatia and Bosnia – ethnic violence on all sides in the “greatest European conflict since WWII”

Exception: Czechoslovakia  Peacefully dissolved itself into two separate countries along ethnic lines in 1991  Czech Republic  Slovak Republic

U.S. as Hegemon – What are we fighting for now? “What is at stake is more than one small country, it is a big idea — a new world order, where diverse nations are drawn together in common cause to achieve the universal aspirations of mankind: peace and security, freedom, and the rule of law.” - President George H.W. Bush, 1991

The Gulf War ( )  a.k.a. Operation Desert Storm  How did it start?  Saddam Hussein/Iraq invades oil-rich Kuwait  What happened?  UN Security Council – economic sanctions  Coalition (group) of nations send military into Iraq  Majority: US  Also: Saudi Arabia (paid for 50% of total cost), UK, Egypt  How did it end?  Clear military victory for Coalition but, Saddam Hussein was allowed to stay in power

U.S. Hegemony  Hegemony: leadership or dominance by one country or social group  Political hegemony  Military hegemony  Economic hegemony  Cultural hegemony  Does the U.S. still have hegemony today?